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Heavy Bombardment Continues in Severodonetsk; Russia Feeling the Brunt of Sanctions; Lawmakers Still in Debate Over Gun Reform Bill; Countries Seeing Recession in the Horizon; A Chaotic Start for the Americas Summit. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired June 08, 2022 - 03:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[03:00:00]

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PAULA NEWTON, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and a warm welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world, I'm Paula Newton.

Just ahead on CNN Newsroom. A fierce fight is underway for the eastern city of Severodonetsk, and the destruction is widespread.

President Biden is expected to arrive in Los Angeles for the Summit of the Americas later today. Ahead, what is at stake for the region.

And a Russian blockade is preventing millions of tons of Ukrainian grain from reaching countries that desperately need it. The Russian foreign minister is expected to discuss the crisis with the Turkish officials in the coming hours.

Ukrainian troops are locked in a bloody and brutal fights for the eastern city of Severodonetsk. Now the city has been under heavy bombardment for weeks. A part of Russia's larger push to seize control of the entire Donbas region.

Ukrainian officials say the situation inside the city changes by the hour. And the fighting just never stops. Not even hospitals have been spared from destruction. A new satellite images revealed the aftermath of military strikes on two hospitals. You see it there. In Severodonetsk and another nearby town.

Meantime, Ukrainian officials say they've received bodies of more than 200 troops who died in Mariupol. Many died while defending the Azovstal steel supplant, the city's last bastion of Ukrainian resistance before it fell under Russian control last month.

But since then, it seems conditions in Mariupol have only gotten worse. And advisor to be exiled mayor says corpses - corpses are piling up around the city. And Russia is quietly closing it off amid fears of a cholera outbreak.

For more now on the situation on the ground we are joined by CNN Salma Abdelaziz, she is live for us in Kyiv. And going to that battle which just continues in the east, Salma, how can we assess Russia's progress? You know, they claim they now control nearly all of the Luhansk region. But, you know, U.K. intelligence report made clear that while Russia is making progress, it is slow and tentative.

SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN REPORTER: Look, progress is, I think a term here that would be debatable. Any gains made, or as you said tenuous, it's hard to hold on to, essentially any gains that is true for the Ukrainian side, just as much as it is true for the Russian side.

Yes, you are looking at Ukrainian force that is outmanned, outgunned, Russian artillery is absolutely superior in the east grinding down Ukrainian forces. But you're looking at very slow progress. Essentially, a bloody kinetic stalemate where both sides sort of go back and forth. But no one is really able to gain or hold much territory.

And that's where I'll start speaking to you about Severodonetsk. I want to first pull up a map of the front line here of Ukraine. Because there's two areas that really are flash points right now. But the key one is right in the center there. The Donbas region.

Luhansk, as you mentioned where Severodonetsk is, Russian-backed separatist claiming they have 97 percent of that area, of the area of Luhansk. So, that means if Russian forces are able to capture Severodonetsk, that would be a major step towards controlling that area. The area of Luhansk, and of course, the bigger goal of taking the Donbas region. President Putin's goal in that area.

But how will that take place. Over the last few days, these bloody street to street battles have seen, yes, at times Russian forces pushback. And then it's this push and pull between forces. You have civilians, over 10,000 of them caught in the middle in Severodonetsk.

Russian forces using, according to Ukrainian officials an incredible amount of resources, firepower, troops, artillery to try to take control of that region but also, to bomb the access road leading into Severodonetsk. That means supply routes are tenuous at best. That means, again, those civilians trapped inside can't get out.

And I want to show you the aftermath, the consequence of that. We have satellite images here that show you the before and after of Severodonetsk, absolutely decimated by some estimates, over 90 percent of buildings in that city are destroyed. So, they're fighting over wasteland, but it is still strategic in that larger goal for the Donbas.

Now, that brings me to the southern front. Again, it's the eastern front, Severodonetsk that is the flash point. But if you look at the map, over the last few days, we've had heavy shelling, Ukrainian officials telling us where the area of Mykolaiv, that's the southern front that has again not been moving very much.

[03:05:05]

But you could look potentially at Russian forces trying to spread their resources, forcing Ukrainian defenders to spread their resources, as well. Look, this is a battle of attrition, Paula, and it could drag out.

NEWTON: Yes, absolutely. As President Zelenskyy says a bloody stalemate. Salma Abdelaziz for us in Kyiv, thank you.

I want to go now to our Clare Sebastian who is standing by for us in London. Clare, you know, Russia is claiming progress, we were just talking about it and taking the east. And yet the German chancellor, for one, says that they are on borrowed time. That sanctions will compromise Russia's military capabilities. What more can you tell us about that possibility?

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I think that that is in fact plausible, Paula. Obviously, we don't have sort of direct insight into Russia's military industrial base, they don't publish data about their, their sort of, military production.

But we know that one of the first areas, one of the biggest impacts so far of the sanctions that have been put in place is Russia's industrial base facing export control. Unable to import parts from western countries on which it has become reliant facing the exit of sort of, western partners and investment.

So that is critical. Experts have told me that there's barely an industry in Russia that is unaffected by that. And I said, look, we don't have data on the military sector but we did, for example, get data this week on the auto sector, auto sales fell in Russia in May by 83.5 percent. That's up to falling in April by more than 70 percent, and falling in March by more than 60 percent.

So, you get a sense of what's happening to sort of industrial pockets of the Russian economy. So, it has stabilized its financial system. But there's not much that it can do in the short time to adapt to these very sudden expert controls.

And meanwhile, the World Bank this week, Paula, said that the Russian economy is set to contract 8.9 percent. That forecast assuming that the sanctions regimes stay in place. Of course, we do see them in areas continuing to tighten.

NEWTON: Yes, and the issue here, Clare, has always been how effective the sanctions can actually be. And some have surprise -- have been surprised, really at the resiliency of the Russian economy. And we will see in the coming days if that actually does affect the military capability. Clare Sebastian for us in London. Thank you.

Now, in the city of Sloviansk in eastern Ukraine some residents have remained behind despite the dangers posed by the fighting, some chose to stay. Others because they had no other choice.

CNN's Ben Wedeman has their story.

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BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: At three years old Ivan doesn't know war rages around him.

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WEDEMAN: He doesn't really understand it yet, says his father Igor (Ph). For him, it's just boom, boom. We try to explain it's only a loud car passing by.

Ivan's mother, Senya (Ph), shows where they live. Neighbors who left the city of Sloviansk let them move into their ground floor apartment because it's safer. The hallways full of bottled water, the bathtub is full. There's been no running water here for weeks.

As the air raid sirens glares, those who remain behind wait for food supplies at a distribution center. "We are staying," says Zenayda (Ph), my neighbor has a well I have dogs and wo cats. My husband has diabetes."

Sixty-four-year-old Nikolai (Ph) shrugs off the danger of staying put. "Where can I go if they bomb everywhere," he asked me. You can't escape your fate."

Galina (Ph) fled her village nearby on the front lines. "It was very hard there," she says. "There was a lot of shelling, half the village disappeared."

Her son-in-law and her daughter are taking her away. Every day people gathered for buses out of Sloviansk. The war now into its fourth month have seen millions flee their homes. With no end in sight, a sense of resignation and exhaustion has set in. Some who leave may never return.

Katya's mother and father have come to say goodbye.

KATYA, SLOVIANSK RESIDENT: Actually, I didn't plan to leave, but I decided to leave because the situation is getting more and more dangerous.

WEDEMAN: Her parents will stay behind even as a part of them leaves.

Ben Wedeman, CNN, Sloviansk, Ukraine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Still to come for us, a flurry of discussions on gun reform on Capitol Hill in the coming hours. Details on what's on the table for debate. That's next.

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And later, a turbulent start to a key summit in the United States after decision to exclude three countries causes further friction.

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NEWTON: So, a U.S. Senate Republican said she was taken by surprise by a flood of calls from her constituents urging action on gun reform. Cynthia Loomis is now rethinking her position on new legislation. The Wyoming Republican who represents, we should say a very pro-gun state is now considering voting for a package that could include restricting some people from buying guns.

However, as CNN's Manu Raju reports, most of her conservative colleagues remain resolutely opposed to gun reform.

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MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: After his mother was murdered in the Buffalo grocery store massacre, Garnell Whitfield made this appeal to senators today. Do something.

GARNELL WHITFIELD, JR., SON OF BUFFALO SHOOTING VICTIM RUTH WHITFIELD: Because if there is nothing, respectfully, senators, you should yield your positions of authority and influence to others that are willing to lead on this issue. The urgency of the moment demands no less. My mother's life mattered.

RAJU: But in the halls of the Senate, a deal to help stem the rising tide of mass shootings across the country is still elusive. Even as negotiators race to find an agreement as soon as this week.

What are the sticking points right now?

SEN. JOHN CORNYN (R-TX): I think it's just that different people have different ideas and you know, this is a big, diverse country. And so -- and so, I think it just takes time to build consensus.

RAJU: A smile bar partisan group of senators looking at new changes to gun laws, including encouraging states to enact red flag laws, allowing juvenile records to be reviewed during background checks. And pumping money into school security and mental health programs. What's not on the table, banning semiautomatic rifles used in many mass shootings and raising the age to 21 to purchase those weapons, even though the killer in Uvalde, Texas was only 18 years old and wielded an AR-15 style rifle.

So, Senator, why not raise the age to 21 for people buying semiautomatic rifles?

SEN. THOM TILLIS (R-NC): We're talking about a lot of things, and we're talking about most are background checks, juvenile records. The areas where we can get consensus.

RAJU: Why don't you have agreement on that?

TILLIS: That's, you know, we have a lot of people on the discussion. We got to get 60 votes. Hopefully, we get 75 votes on this.

RAJU: Why do people even need AR-15s?

SEN. JOHN THUNE (R-SD): Well, I mean, the challenge we have on that is -- there's 20 million of them in the country already. They are a sporting rifle and it's something that a lot of people for purposes of going out, target shooting, in my state they use them to shoot prairie dogs and, you know, other types of varmints. And so, I think that there are legitimate reasons why people would want to have them.

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RAJU: But also, may not be included, expanding background checks on gun show sales and over the internet.

Why it is been so hard to get Republicans on board behind this?

UNKNOWN: You should ask Republicans who are not on board behind it.

RAJU: I mean, you've been working on this issue for a decade.

UNKNOWN: I know, it's frustrating.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

RAJU: Now sources tell us that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has expressed an openness to backing an increase into the age of 21 to purchase those semiautomatic rifles. Current law is the age of 18. But privately he has expressed an openness to backing them.

But even so, that is unlikely to get into a final deal because Republicans are opposed to this for the most part, and Mitch McConnell, as a top Republican in the Senate often aligns himself with the rest of the members of his conference. So that key issue unlikely to get resolved. How will the others get resolved, a major question as negotiators meet in the days ahead and try to get a deal on the floor as soon as next week.

Manu Raju, CNN, Capitol Hill.

NEWTON: He's an Academy Award winning actor but Matthew McConaughey is now raising his voice with other angry and grieving Americans to call for gun reform after a mass shooting left his home town in mourning. Listen to him now.

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MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY, ACTOR: So, we know it's on the table. We need to invest in mental health care. We need safer schools. We need to restrain sensationalized media coverage. We need to restore our family values. We need to restore our American values. And, we need a responsible gun ownership. Responsible gun ownership. We need background checks.

We need to raise the minimum age to purchase an AR-15 rifle to 21. We need a waiting period for those rifles. We need red flag laws and consequences for those who abused them. These are reasonable, practical, tactical regulations to our nation, states, communities, schools, and homes.

Responsible gun owners are fed up with the Second Amendment being abused and hijacked by some deranged individuals. These regulations are not a step back, they're is step forward for a civil society and -- and the Second Amendment.

(END VIDEO CLIP) NEWTON: Again, a reminder the Hollywood star is from Uvalde, Texas where 19 children and two teachers were killed at Robb elementary in that tragic mass shooting last month. McConaughey spent most of the past week with families of the victims.

The World Bank warns many countries will soon find it hard to avoid a recession. That grim message was part of a new report published Tuesday, in which the bank also announced it was slashing its global growth estimate for the year. It expect -- expects the global economy to grow at an annualize pace of just under 3 percent this year. That's down sharply from the original forecast of more than 4 percent. And thanks in part to a number of issues including what is known as stagflation.

Now earlier, I spoke with economist Megan Greene about what that means.

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MEGAN GREENE, GLOBAL ECONOMIST: The real specter of stagflation stems from the 1970s. In the U.S., when we had incredibly high inflation and incredibly low growth, and so unemployment was driven higher, people standards of living really fell. And so, that's what people think of automatically when you say stagflation.

And so, the fact that David Malpass, the president of the World Bank said that, you know, warn that the world was actually facing likely stagflation and many countries might go into a recession, that's really worrisome. Because central banks, of course are stuck trying to figure out whether they're going to lean against inflation and tighten policy, or whether they're going to support growth and keep policy really loose.

And you know, if they choose one, it's at the expense of the other. And so, they're really stuck in a tight spot. There's no easy policy fix for stagflation. I think certain economies are more likely to be in stagnation than others.

Europe will certainly be hit harder by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the supply chain issues stemming from that. That's why I think Europe is more likely to be in stagflation than the U.S., for example. We're actually consumers and businesses are flushed with cash because of the stimulus measures. So, I don't think it is much of a risk for the U.S., as it is for some other developed economies.

NEWTON: Yes, and then there's the issue of the developing economies. Like I say, they have livelihoods that were getting better and are now at risk.

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I mean, one of these innocuous lines that you read from the World Bank report is that, for the remainder of this decade, their forecasts are being downgraded and that it will not average what had been achieved in the past decade. GREENE: Yes, so average growth will likely be lower over the next 10

years than it was in the past 10 years. For developing economies, which you highlight, I think the prospects are very worrisome because a lot of these economies were over leveraged before the pandemic hit. Then they had to borrow a lot in order to pay for their pandemic response.

And so, now they're trying to re tend -- retrench at their fiscal house in order. And at the same time, they're being hit by high energy and food costs as a result, in part, of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. And so, you know, the Fed is tightening rates. So, rates are going up globally. The dollar is getting stronger, which makes it harder to service dollar denominated debt for a lot of emerging markets.

This all creates kind of a perfect storm that could cause a lot of debt and stress across emerging markets. And so, that is a concern that we might see countries start to default or need debt restructuring. So I think the IMF and the World Bank are going to be pretty busy over the next couple of years.

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NEWTON: Megan Greene there from Harvard. And as she was just saying, the economic strain is now being felt around the world but acutely in Latin America and the Caribbean where a slowdown in growth is expected this year. According to the International Monetary Fund the projected growth for 2022 stands at two and a half percent. That is down from nearly 7 percent last year. That will affect livelihoods. And the region is also dealing with rising inflation rates.

The number started to climb in 2021 and in April of this year, the annual inflation for the region was just over 8 percent. Now the economy will be a key focus as leaders of the western hemisphere gather for the Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles.

U.S. President Joe Biden, the host of the event is set to arrive in the coming hours. Now, immigration and climate change are also high on the agenda, but the event is being overshadowed by the Biden administration's decision to exclude Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela from the event. The boycott by other leaders that's followed.

From Los Angeles, Benjamin Gedan is acting director of the Latin America Program at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. He's also the former South America director for the National Security Council staff in the Obama White House.

And it's good to get you to weigh in here on what I will put plainly and bluntly is a bit of a mess. The region already felt neglected, and yet, now -- I mean, just let's take the migration issue alone. This summit should have been about rebuilding relationships, not tearing them down.

BENJAMIN GEDAN, ACTING DIRECTOR, LATIN AMERICA PROGRAM, WOODROW WILSON INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR SCHOLARS: Look, the run up to the summit has been absolutely chaotic. The region is in desperate need of U.S. support in all kinds of international aid. And instead, we spent months thinking about who would be invited to the summit, who would attend, rather than the agenda for the gathering.

NEWTON: And yet, it's turned into so much more. Especially because Mexico really escalated this entire thing. AMLO, in particular is taking that hard line. He's even suggesting, suddenly, perhaps, that he might weaponize migration flows in order to get what he wants from the United States. Do you see this as opportunistic by a country like Mexico, or really indicative of a much larger problem for the region?

GEDAN: I think the stance, frankly, is absolutely confusing. I mean, just like the United States depends on Mexico for support for migration, both countries are interdependent when it comes to security and when it comes to their economies.

It makes all the sense in the world to get along and to cooperate. And the run up to the summit the Mexicans have been really obstructionists.

NEWTON: Not just obstructionists, as I said ,they've been as blunt as they can be that they are going to cause problems for the United States. And that they were quite miffed about who wasn't invited to the summit. And I do want to turn to the diplomatic issues here.

Are critics right about the Biden administration being hypocritical? I mean, the White House has said they are planning a trip to Saudi Arabia next month. Right? The president is actually visiting that country and its leader. Is he as leader of Saudi Arabia, MBS, not defined as a dictator?

GEDAN: Look, no country in the world can afford to be completely consistent when it comes to the defensive democracy or human rights. But in the past, Latin America has been different, right? The western hemisphere has made a joint commitment, only to permit democratic government.

And all the countries in the region, minus Cuba, signed the Inter- American Democratic Charter and this historic agreement in 2001. And at various times in the region's history, they said Democratic governments is the only system permitted.

So, this wasn't invented by the United States. I think really what we've seen is the region has drifted away from those principles.

NEWTON: And in drifting away from those principles, it's also drifted away from the United States. I mean, U.S. policy in the Americas some say lacks commitment.

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What will that cause the continent, though, in years to come, not just in terms of economic development, but we also have the elephant, literally and figuratively, in the room. The environment is a huge issue. That again, needs to be addressed sooner rather than later in the hemisphere. GEDAN: There's a lot to gain for better cooperation in the

hemisphere. There's enormous amounts of copper and lithium, the so- called strategic minerals that are needed for the energy transition in the United States and the world. The region could be a destination for supply chains, for manufacturers that don't want to be so dependent on dictatorships or countries really geographically distant from the major market, which is the United States.

So, I think better corroboration would benefit all the actors in this hemisphere. And yet, you're absolutely correct, countries are really drifting apart.

NEWTON: OK, but I hate to be the person who wants to point a finger of blame, but I do want to point a finger of blame here. When people are saying why their governments can cooperate in the region, who is the blame here.

I know you're going to tell me there's enough blame to go around, but doesn't the United States have an obligation here to really step up and make sure that these issues are handled? They -- this is their near abroad, they need to take care of it.

GEDAN: Look, I'd say two things. It's a difficult assignment. There's a lot of ideological divisions in Latin America right now. There's poor, corrupt leadership in many countries. Countries drifting towards authoritarian models.

On the other hand, you're right. I think the United States is trying to assert leadership without really putting in the resources that are necessary. And you can't really do that anymore. Because there's another international actor in Latin America that's offering multi- billion-dollar investments in all sorts of critical infrastructure.

NEWTON: Yes, and you are talking about China. And again, this is the United States' attempt, obviously to try and mitigate the influence of China in the region. OK, we will wait to see what does come out of these meetings from the people that are attending. Benjamin Gedan, thanks so much. I appreciate it.

GEDAN: My pleasure.

NEWTON: Meantime, a new migrant caravan is heading north from southern Mexico, and it's bringing fresh attention to the issue of immigration as we've been just talking about those leaders meet for the Americas summit.

Now U.S. officials says a group of about 2,300 people set out on foot from the city of Capitula Monday and they were traveling toward the United States. Most are Venezuelans, but there are also migrants from Nicaragua, Cuba, El Salvador, and Honduras. One man traveling with his wife, children and dog describes the journey so far. Listen.

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CHRISTMAN JAVIER URBAEZ, VENEZUELAN MIGRANT: Yes, they are walking too, same as me. Because imagine, carrying them on my back is risky because if something happens to me, who do they stay with? We are going little by little, little by little giving them a chance to rest and to sleep.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: So, caravans of migrants have left Tapachula particularly and on a regular basis in the past year, although this week appears to be one of the largest.

OK. You are watching CNN Newsroom. Just ahead, a diplomatic push to push a global grain crisis. Ukraine is blaming Russia, but Moscow says sanctions are the problem.

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NEWTON: Ukraine's foreign ministry says unblocking the country's sea ports could help prevent a global food crisis. Kyiv says it's already transporting grain by truck, rail and river. But the Russian blockade of its ports is what is getting its maximum attention. Listen.

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VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE (through translator): I guess that this is a threat of global magnitude. That has just one side to distract. That this is the Russian federation. There are no dialogue here. This is a very concrete tangible threat to Asia, Africa and certain countries in Europe. Because we understand that the ensuing consequences might be famine and migration that is going to affect Europe. So, the consequences may be very severe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: OK, so, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is in Turkey this hour discussing the grain crisis with Turkish officials.

For the latest now we join CNN's Jomana Karadsheh, she is live for us in Ankara. And Jomana, what are Turkish officials saying about progress being made here? I mean, everyone has a right to be skeptical at this point that there can be any progress.

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, look, Paula, the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov with a military delegation arrived here in Ankara last night, they've been meeting with Turkish officials with several issues on the table. But really topping the agenda is this plan to try and establish a safe corridor for Ukrainian grain exports to resume.

And Turkish officials, Paula, are quite optimistic that they are going to be able to push forward this plan. Turkey is of course in this very unique position, it's a NATO country that maintains really close ties with Russia, as well as Ukraine. And it's really tried to use that to try and emerge as a mediator, trying to maintain what they described as this neutral position that some have described as big pro- Ukrainians but not anti-Russian. They have been really trying to use that to try and bring an end to

the war. That hasn't really worked, trying to bring both sides together for more talks. But what they're trying to do right now is use that position they're in as a mediator. And also, Turkey's geographic location, a Black Sea power to try and create this safe corridor to try and avert what could be a catastrophic global food crisis.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KARADSHEH: From his Istanbul terrace, Yoruk Isik has watched part of Russia's invasion of Ukraine play out in Turkey's Bosporus Strait. First it was the military buildup, now the ship watcher and founder of Bosporus Observer has been documenting Russia's theft of Ukrainian grain. With the help of satellite images and Ukrainian activists, he tracked and filmed this Russian ship transiting the Bosporus.

The ship appeared in Maxar Technologies images obtained by CNN last month it was smuggling stolen Ukrainian wheat.

YORUK ISIK, NON-RESIDENT SCHOLAR, MIDDLE EAST INSTITUTE: This is a bottleneck spot, and there aren't so many spots like this. This easy to monitor. We almost missed nothing coming out of Black Sea from here. Only in the last two, three weeks we have witnessed at least 10 journeys of 10 different ships carried wheat from occupied Ukrainian ports into mostly to Syria.

Because people are worried about sanctions, et cetera, they are usually carrying first to Syria and it's getting distributed to the other Middle Eastern customers from Syria so far.

KARADSHEH: Turkey straits are governed by the 1936 Montreux convention. It's already restricted access to Russian naval vessels under that agreement. But when it comes to commercial traffic, it's limited in what it can do. But Russia is not only accused of theft. Ukraine, the U.S., and the E.U. have all accused it of holding the world to ransom. Blockading Ukrainian ports and stopping the export of more than 20 million tons of Ukrainian grain that dozens of countries rely on. Russia blames Ukraine for the blockade and says it's western sanctions that are causing a global food crisis.

[03:34:57]

Turkey is trying to use its strategic location and its close ties with both its Black Sea neighbors Russia and Ukraine to try and broker a deal that would establish a sea corridor for Ukrainian grain exports.

That potential grain corridor through the Turkish straits will top the agenda when the Russian foreign minister meets his Turkish counterpart on Wednesday. And meeting Turkish officials are hoping will lay the groundwork for talks soon between Russia, Ukraine, Turkey and the United Nations.

YUSUF ERIM, EDITOR-AT-LARGE, TRT WORLD: Turkey can definitely provide services and auditor to make sure that grain is being sent out from both Ukraine and Russia. Being one of the Black Sea powers, it has the capacity to provide security inside the Black Sea as well. So, it can be a player that provide security, that provides observation, that provides auditing that could be acceptable and considered legitimate by both Kyiv and Moscow.

KARADSHEH: But the Russians will have their own demands likely unacceptable to western powers. They have already indicated they want sanctions lifted.

ERIM: I expect the Russians to want a waiver on their grain sales as well, and they feel that they have the leverage right now. Turkey is going to be very important of being able to negotiate between Russia and the west to be able to get a sanction waiver for the Russians for their grain sales as well.

KARADSHEH: When few will trust what Russia promises there is no easy path out of this. But Turkey is hoping it can at least begin the complex process of trying to end the blockade and avert the crisis the U.N. has warned would lead to famine and instability around the world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KARADSHEH: And Paula, we expect to hear from the Russian and the Turkish foreign ministers in a joint press conference in just under 90 minutes. Turkish officials have indicated that this is really a first meeting laying the groundwork for what they expect to be more complex technical talks about how this quarter is going to look like.

How it is going to work, who is going to do the demining of the waters around the ports, who is going to do escort for the ships, a naval escort, and then there's the issue of inspections in an observation mechanism, really complex issues ahead.

But perhaps the toughest issue for them to tackle is going to be the issue of lack of trust. We've heard from the Ukrainians saying that they want security guarantees. They are not going to sign on to any agreement unless they get security guarantees concerned that Russia would use this to attack their ports.

NEWTON: Well, Jomana, we'll leave it there for now. I know you'll be on top of these meetings as they unfold in the coming hours. Thanks so much.

Just ahead for us here, police and the military are searching the Amazon for a British journalist and a Brazilian indigenous advocate who disappeared Sunday. We will have a report from Sao Paulo.

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NEWTON: A British journalist and an advocate for Brazil's indigenous population have gone missing in a remote valley in the western of Brazil. And they reportedly received death threats before disappearing.

[03:40:02]

CNN's Shasta Darlington now has more on that story. SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fear and anger were on the rise

Tuesday as search and rescue teams failed to come up with any sign of the British journalist and indigenous affairs expert who went missing in the Amazon on Sunday.

They were last seen in the Javari Valley in the far western part of the Brazilian Amazon near the Peruvian border. Now, they were headed out for what was supposed to be a two-hour boat ride to Atalaia do Norte but they never arrived.

Local indigenous organizations quickly sent out search and rescue teams back on Sunday. Well, on Tuesday, troops joined in using boats and a helicopter in the search efforts. But experts say it all came a bit late, speed was actually crucial. And that's because this protective territory has been under attack from different groups involved in illegal activities for a few years now.

I'm talking about illegal loggers, miners, poachers, and fishermen, as well as drug traffickers in a territory that's supposed to be reserved for indigenous communities including several on contacted tribes.

Now, these land invasions have heightened conflict. And in 2019 indigenous affairs representative, actually a colleague of Pereira's (Ph) was murdered in the same area. Both Phillips and Pereira had recently received death threats themselves. So, the concern now is that they may have had a run in with the person or persons involved in some of the illegal activities.

A major source of frustration has been a slow response by officials. They didn't join the search and rescue efforts until Monday, and they didn't put a helicopter in the air until Tuesday. Their families have published desperate messages, urging a more efficient response.

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SIAN PHILLIPS, MISSING JOURNALIST'S SISTER: He loves the country and cares deeply about the Amazon and the people there. We knew it was a dangerous place but don't really believe it's possible to safeguard the nature and the livelihood of the indigenous people. We are really worried about him and urged the authorities in Brazil to do all they can, search the routes he was following.

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DARLINGTON: Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro also weighed in on Tuesday. Illegal activity in the Amazon has soared during his administration while the agency's task with fighting it have been stripped of funding and personnel.

Now on Tuesday, he called the disappearance of the pair and a, quote, "un-recommended adventure." And said they could have been the victims of an execution or an accident.

Shasta Darlington, CNN, Sao Paulo.

NEWTON: Finally, for us, U.S. golfer, Dustin Johnson has resigned from the PGA Tour and will instead headlined the inaugural Saudi backed LIV series which tees off on Thursday in the U.K. Now, Johnson made the announcement at a press conference at the LIV venue outside London Tuesday.

Last week, in fact, golfer Kevin Na became the first American to quit the PGA Tour and move to the controversial LIV series. The Saudis are accused of so-called sports washing. That's pumping money into high profile events to, of course, distract from its poor human rights record.

Now, Johnson's announcement comes after Phil Mickelson's apology for comments he made about the Saudi regime. And news that he will also be playing for LIV. Now, in the next hour, Mickelson will be one of several golfers participating at a news conference ahead of that tournament, sure to be lots of questions about this tour and what it means.

I want to thank you for your company, I'm Paula Newton. Have a great day wherever you are. Inside Africa is next.

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